My
recent visits and work at
EARTH
University’s new campus in
Northwest Costa Rica
introduced me to many different plants.As an incurable gardener, I was amazed at the
crops that can grow in this dry tropical area of
Central America
.

One
of the more fascinating trees I encountered was a small
tree that was covered with a fleshy fruit.It looked like a sweet pepper, except it had a
seed growing at the end. Many
small trees lined the
main entrance road and a few others were scattered
around campus.

The
local “Ticos”
(Costa Ricans) called this fruit el
Marañón
and said the fleshy fruit was good to eat.But they warned me to stay away from that seed.The seed looked familiar, and I found out is
quite toxic in the raw form.However, if properly roasted and cracked open, it
is very familiar to snack food fans.This is the subject of this week’s column –
the cashew.

It
amazes me that this plant family can have such a wide
variety of really good and really bad plants.And, rather than call it by a “proper” name
– Anacardiaceae
– it would be easier to fall back on a more familiar
family name– the Cashew Family.

This
family includes some rogues that are all too familiar in
our Florida Yards, the Brazilian pepper (Schinus
terebinthifolius), poison ivy (Toxicodendron
radicans),poison
sumac (Rhus vernix) and our native poison wood (Metopium
toxiferum).

Not
all of this family is undesirable, as there are several
useful plants also in the cashew family; the mango (Mangifera
indica) and the pistachio (Pistacia vera) are
two that come to mind.

All
of these plants have thick dark green leathery leaves
with prominent veins.They
generally grow with woody stems, although in the case of
poison ivy, the stem is not self-supporting. And
in most cases the fruit is significant – for better or
worse.

Running
through all of these plants is an oily sap that contains
a very irritating substance – urishol –which causes
most people to break out in a skin rash when they
contact it.The
warning is that some are more sensitive to this sap that
others. If you are severely affected by poison ivy, you
should be cautious about mangos, and pistachios, and
cashews for that matter.

And
for safety’s sake, don’t burn any of the raw plant
residues.The
sap stays around even in dried cuttings and can become
airborne in smoke. A
product called ivy-block can be applied before
contacting these plants. It reduces the severity of the
rash if it is put on before exposure to the cashew
relatives.

The
cashew tree (Anacardium occidentale) originally came from the dry tropical
highlands in eastern Brazil.From
there, it was sent all over the world because of its
fleshy fruit.As
people have learned how to safely and efficiently roast
and shell the seed, the nut has now become more
important in the marketplace.

The
cashew apple “fruit” is not really a fruit, but an
enlarged fleshy stem that produces the seed.The flesh has the consistency of a mango, and the
flavor is somewhat similar in taste.I only had one chance to taste the fruit.It was good but much milder than a mango.

Cashew
apple “fruit” is sweeter when fully ripe, but if it
falls off the tree you would have to race the many other
creatures that want to eat it.It has a short shelf life, so if not eaten fresh
or made into tropical beverages or desserts, it may be
made into fruit preserves or dried.

The fleshy stem of the
cashew-apple matures to a yellow or red color.
They have a short shelf life. The true
fruit is the hard capsule on the blossom end of
this "receptacle". Photo:
Adrian Hunsberger, UF/IFAS

The
flesh of the cashew apple is like a Mango in texture
and flavor. Photo: Dan Culbert,
UF/IFAS.

Cashew
trees may be grown in frost-free areas.UF Tropical Fruit specialist Jon Crane has a very
detailed bulletin on growing cashew apple
trees.Let us know if you would like to receive a copy.If you want to grow cashews in Florida, here are
a few important things to think about:

*They do not like any frost.Plan on keeping this tree in a container and
rolling it indoors when near-freezing temperatures are
forecast.

*It will take several years for a small
seedling tree to get big enough to flower and fruit.Enjoy the fleshy cashew apple like a seedless
mango; throw away the seed or use them to try to grow a
cashew tree.

*If you want to grow your own, don’t use
a nut out of the jar – it has been roasted and will
not grow.While
they are difficult to find in nurseries, I did locate a
nursery near
Homestead
that has cashew trees for sale.

*Do not (i.e. DON’T)
try to break open the seeds, extract the nut and eat it,
as there is a thick gooey layer of toxic oil just
waiting to cause you lots of skin rash.(If you want to learn how to properly roast any
homegrown cashew nuts, please contact our office and I
will help you locate some instructions.)

Cashew Apples are
harvested for making into cashew apple recipes,
while the external seed are separated for further
processing. Photo: Univ.
of Georgia.

The fruit are sun dried and will needed to be
roasted and cracked open before the nuts are
safe to eat. Photo: Dan Culbert,
UF/IFAS

Roasted cashews can be
processed into a very delicious cashew
nut-butter.Photo:
Dan Culbert, UF/IFAS

People
living on this side of the border know cashews as that
curved shaped nut with a pleasant taste.Often found in mixtures of snack nuts, cashews
are used in some favorite recipes like Cashew Chicken.

During
my visit to a market in Costa Rica, I looked for some dried fruit or even a container of cotos
de laMarañón
(Cashew apple preserves).My search
for those products was unsuccessful, but I did find a
very colorful jar of mantequilla
delMarañón
– cashew
butter.

On
my return, I enjoyed this tasty product and then took
a careful look at the label.I discovered that the nuts were grown in Asia, shipped to New YorkState where they
were processed into the spreadable cashew butter, then
exported to Costa Rica for sale!I’ve since found that cashew butter can be
purchased here in Florida supermarkets,
right next to the specialty peanut butter.

Hope
you enjoy some cashews while you are celebrating our
country’s 232nd
birthday.If you need additional information on cashews,
please contact your local Extension office. GOGATORS!

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Trade names, where used, are given for the purpose of providing specific information. They do not constitute an endorsement or guarantee of products named, nor does it imply criticism of products not named. The Florida Cooperative Extension Service - Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer authorized to provide research, educational information, and other
services to individuals and institutions that function without regard to race, color, sex, age, handicap, or national origin. Florida Cooperative Extension Service / IFAS / University of Florida Nick Place, Dean.
Last
update: 03/31/2015.